


A Gamble on Love

by TolKienSwan



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F, Swan Queen - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-11
Updated: 2018-02-09
Packaged: 2018-11-30 23:30:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 16,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11473938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TolKienSwan/pseuds/TolKienSwan
Summary: Reluctantly spending the weekend in Vegas to attend her once step-sister's bachelorette party and wedding, Regina Mills wins big. Then, in her hour of need, a blonde sheriff comes offering help and so much more.





	1. End and Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! Here is the start of my new fanfic. Be advised my grammar sucks and I own none of the characters or anything from the show. Hope you all enjoy!

Divorce lawyers aren’t hard to find. Like funeral directors, they’ll unfortunately always have business. One can only hope they’ll never end up having to seek out such a service.

Regina and Emma certainly did, yet here they were.

“So let me get this straight,” the lawyer said, taking off his glasses. “You don’t share any bank accounts, properties, or any other assets, and you don’t want anything from each other? As though the marriage never happened?”

“Yes,” Regina nodded. “Just make it so we aren’t married anymore.”

The lawyer eyed Regina suspiciously before looking to Emma.

“Miss Swan…”

“Mrs Swan-Mills,” Emma quickly corrected him. “Might as well use the name while it’s still true.”

“Right,” the lawyer nodded. “Mrs Swan-Mills, are you okay with this agreement? After all, your wife earns a substantial amount more than you.”

“Yeah, she does but I’m totally on board with this. It was my idea.”

The lawyer sighed, leaning back in his chair for a moment before sitting up straight again.

“But I just don’t get it. You don’t want any assets split, you have no disagreements, you seem to get on rather well. Please, explain to me why you are getting a divorce?”

Regina and Emma looked to each other before facing the lawyer once more.

Emma shrugged her shoulders.

“It’s kind of a long story.”

 

_One year earlier…_

Regina hated flying. She didn’t have a phobia or anything; it was just the hassle of it all. More specifically the people who went out of their way to make it a hassle. It should be easy- get there, check in, go through security, board the plane, get off at the other end, go through security, get your luggage, and go.

Do people do that? No.

People make a fuss at the check in or have a bag that is overweight and stand there arguing with the person being the desk about it. At security, there are always those who leave liquids in their hand luggage and hold up the queue, despite it being common knowledge that liquids are not allowed. Then there are those who make a fuss about boarding, or even more annoyingly the ones who don’t even show up until the doors are about to close, even though their NAMES HAVE BEEN CALLED OVER THE TANNOY SIX TIMES!

So yes, Regina hated flying, and a flight to Las Vegas of all places was pretty much her worst nightmare.

Normally, the flights themselves were fine and she could just put in earbuds and read if her fellow passengers were particularly rowdy. However, even with the sound blocked out, it was unbearable. Middle-aged women ran up and down the isles to the bathroom, grown men singing and clapping like excitable toddlers, and drunks laughing and shouting, apparently ‘getting the party started early’.

It was an agonising flight and as soon as it was over, she was relieved. Hopefully they wouldn’t be so energetic on the return flight when they’d had their fill of whatever beckoned them to the desert city.

She went through security and get her luggage thankfully without issue. It was then she walked outside that another problem surfaced, this one being long lasting and inescapable.

“Regina!” Mary-Margaret and her gang of girls cried in unison, all running over to envelope her in a group hug she certainly didn’t want to be a part of.

“Hey, Mary-Margaret,” Regina smiled awkwardly once she was freed. “Is this the whole group?”

“You’re the last one to arrive,” the pixie-haired woman told her before handing her a sash.

Everyone had them. Ruby, Mary-Margaret’s best friend, had the coveted _Maid of Honour_ sash; Ashley, a girl Regina vaguely remembered from high school, had a sash saying _Baby Mamma_ ; a woman she guessed was Ruby’s girlfriend Dorothy had _Maid of Honour’s Date- Back Off_ squeezed onto hers; and Belle, a quiet girl she remembered pretty much living the library, had a sash that labelled her _The Smart One._

Regina’s was _Sister of the Bride._

It was correct, kind of. Her mother and Mary-Margaret’s father had married when she’d just turned eight but had divorced before she went to college. Mary-Margaret had been an only child and for some reason had latched onto the idea of them being ‘sisters’. Regina, however, wasn’t so committed to the whole sister thing. She had a half-sister and that was certainly enough but for some reason, she had to deal with Mary-Margaret-sunshine and rainbows-Blanchard too.

With a sigh, she put the sash on and pretended to be happy about it.

Tomorrow, Mary-Margaret was getting married to her childhood sweetheart, David Nolan, in a small Chapel not far from the Las Vegas strip.

Regina was pretty much in living hell.


	2. Jackpot

They’d checked into their hotel and as soon as they’d changed and met back in the lobby, Ruby had taken their room keys, saying it was ‘Maid of Honour responsibility’.

“I’m not drinking much,” she’d said adamantly. “I’m in charge of making sure all you ladies don’t do anything too outrageous.”

By the time they’d gone to the buffet and reached dessert, Ruby had drunk more than most of them. Still, she managed to get them into a taxi and on to their first stop of the night, a low key casino close to the main strip. After checking in with the groom’s party, of course.

The whole situation was ridiculously complicated. The bachelor party and the bachelorette party were in separate hotels and, because Mary-Margaret had always been annoyingly superstitious, the Best Man and Ruby were keeping in contact to make sure the bride and groom didn’t bump into each other.

There was much talk about the best man, mostly about how they were a woman.

“I mean, can you do that?” Ashley asked as they all sat at the bar, not yet venturing into the sea of fruit machines and poker tables. “I mean, it’s in the name.”

“Sure it counts,” Dorothy answered. “It’s the 21st century after all.”

“And who else was he gonna ask?” Ruby added. “They’re so close.”

Mary-Margaret took another sip of her third glass of wine just from that bar. She’d had two glasses of champagne back at the hotel.

“I was jealous when she started working with David,” she admitted. “The whole being his boss thing bothered me for some reason. Pretty blonde in charge of my handsome beau- I kept getting ideas in my head of them together.”

Regina laughed at that, on her second glass herself.

“Too many steamy novels, Miss Blanchard.”

Mary-Margaret giggle with a hiccup.

“Right you are, Mills. Though it turns out I had nothing to worry about. She likes girls more than he does.”

That instantly peaked Regina’s interest.

“Yeah, David so never stood a chance even if he had eyes for anyone but you,” Regina added. “She’s totally not on that team. And she’s a player, hates commitment and mess.”

That made Regina even more interested.

“She’s nice though,” Belle added, grounding the conversation with her one glass ‘sobriety’. “More of a gentleman than most guys.”

“She’s lonely,” Mary-Margaret nodded. “I just wish she’d find someone nice.”

The conversation soon turned into a gossip update from the small Maine town. Regina recognised a few names here and there but it had been years since she’d been back. The only reason she saw or spoke to Mary-Margaret was because the woman was persistent, always coming down to visit and calling bi-weekly. It was nice she cared, Regina guessed, even though she got a little too much at times.

It didn’t take long for Ruby to get bored, Regina vividly remembering her fellow brunette’s inability to sit still longer than five minutes. So they headed out into the casino. Most of the gang headed off to the poker tables while Regina and Belle held back, preferring to stay on the machines.

“So, how’s Mr Gold?” Regina asked, making the other woman blush.

“He’s fine. He wasn’t thrilled that I was coming here but he didn’t try stop me.”

“Why wouldn’t he want you to?” Regina frowned.

“He gets paranoid I’ll leave him for a younger model,” Belle admitted sadly. “But I never would. He’s the love of my life.”

Regina smiled at the naïve woman. There was no such thing as ‘the love of your life’, only love affairs that would eventually fizzle out. Or so she had found in her experience.

“I’m glad you’re happy,” she said in reply.

“What about you?” Belle asked. “Got anyone special?”

“Not really,” Regina shrugged. “I’m too busy with work for anything serious”

“Oh yes, you’re a book editor. What a great job!”

Regina nodded in agreement. She loved her job, especially her salary.

“Yes, I like it a lot.”

“But didn’t you have someone a while back? Mary-Margaret mentioned someone called Mal?”

“Of course she did,” Regina sighed, knowing her ex-step-sister’s apt for gossiping far too well. “That didn’t work out.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that,” Belle said sadly, to which Regina shrugged.

“We were just too alike, is all. It happens.”

“That’s a shame,” Belle replied. “I hate it when people break up. It’s like all the love disappears.”

“I still love Mal,” Regina replied. “She’s my best friend. Sometimes finding a place in someone’s life, and vice versa, takes a while. Some people are friends for years and realise they are soulmates, others are in a relationship for years then realise they are better off at being best friends without all the romance.”

“But isn’t the goal to fall in love with your best friend?” Belle asked. “I mean, it always seems that way in the movies.”

“Movies are movies,” Regina answered, putting her coins into the machine she’d been sat at for over ten minutes without even touching. “Sure, the best case scenario is to find someone you get along with like a house on fire as well as all the romantic stuff. But it’s okay to separate both best friend and lover and be happy. Look at Ruby- Mary-Margaret is her best friend and Dorothy’s girlfriend. It all worked out.”

Belle shrugged and pulled the leaver on the machine, only to come up trumps.

“Damn it.”

“Don’t worry,” Regina told her. “It’s a fix. Look.”

Regina tried to make a point by pulling the leaver on her machine, only for an alarm to go off and a ton of cash to pour out.

Both women looked at each other, stunned. Before either of them could register what happened, a preppy guy in a suit approached them, carrying a large briefcase.

“Congratulations!” he said to Regina. “You won the jackpot of $30,000. Here’s your money.”  
Regina took the briefcase, completely stunned.

“Why not give her a check?” Belle asked, looking at the briefcase with a frown.

“What fun would that be?” the man beamed but Regina knew exactly why- so she’d spend it all tonight here in a casino so they’d get it all back. Fat chance of that. She wasn’t that stupid.

Once the guy left, Belle looked at her in awe.

“I can’t believe it.”

Regina too was in disbelief.

“I-I need to go to the bathroom,” she said, clutching the briefcase close to her chest as she walked off.

“Okay,” Belle called after her. “I’ll go find the others and tell them the great news!”

Regina just threw back a quick thumbs up as she headed for the bathrooms.

What in the world just happened?!


	3. Left behind

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for the great comments and kudos! Again, my grammar sucks and I own nothing. Oh, and I've never been to Vegas so sorry for any mistakes there. Anyway, hope you all enjoy!

After reapplying her lipstick, Regina walked out of the bathroom and headed on auto-pilot to the bar. She ordered a single glass of wine and sipped it while she re-run the moment she won the jackpot over and over in her head. The briefcase was on her knee, her free hand holding onto the handle tight.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t notice a guy approach and take the seat next to her.

“Hey there, love,” he said, bringing her back to the present. “Fancy some company?”

Regina looked the guy up and down. He wore a black leather jacket with matching pants a black shirt underneath. On top of that he had jet black hair and a stud in his ear, making him resemble a cross between a pirate and a jerky frat boy.

“No thank you. I’m waiting for someone,” Regina lied. In fact the others were likely waiting for her. She just needed a moment to herself to process but now she wished she’d avoided the bar altogether.

“Then I’ll keep you company,” he replied, his accent English, kind of. More likely a mixture of several but English was the most dominant. He held out his hand to her, ever finger having at least one ring. “Killian Jones, at your service.”

Regina rolled her eyes but shook his hand anyway.

“Regina Mills.”

“Regina, the name of a goddess.”

Annoyingly, he wasn’t completely wrong. Her name did mean queen.

“Yes,” Regina nodded. “It’s Latin.”

“Oh, you Italian, love?”

“No, half Puerto Rican,” Regina answered. “With a dash of Sicilian on my mother’s side.”

“Exotic,” he commented with a grin. “I like it.”

Regina rolled her eyes again and downed her wine, a skill she had mastered through these exact circumstances.

“Excuse me, I’m going to just look for my friends.”

“Alright Love,” he nodded in understanding. “If I’m not here when you come back, it’s because my mates have arrived. Feel free to come find me. A woman like you is hard to find.”

Regina just nodded awkwardly before dropping her money on the bar and darting off, holding the briefcase tight to her chest. She headed over to the poker tables. That Casino was small in comparison to most of the ones on the strip and it didn’t take long for her to know none of the women were there.

In a panic, Regina went round there entire casino, even risking going back to the bar to see if they had gone there. Still, she couldn’t find them. Getting out her phone, she sent Mary-Margaret a text asking were they’d gone. She waited twenty minutes with no reply before accepting defeat.

With a huff, she headed outside. If they wanted to find her, she’d be back at the hotel enjoying room service and champagne.

There were cabs pulling up one after the other but none of them would pick her up, more interested in the rowdy groups that they could likely make more money out of. When yet another group cut in front of her, Regina growled in frustration and kicked the bollard next to her, only to instantly regret it.

“Shit,” she cursed, awkwardly clutching her foot while also trying to keep a hold on the briefcase. Damn this night, she thought. Why couldn’t she have just made an excuse and sent a gift? She’d be safely back in New York instead of stuck outside a mediocre casino.

“Hey there, ma’am. Need any assistance?”

The voice behind her almost made Regina jump out of her skin. Instinctively clutching the briefcase tighter, she turned round and came face to face with a blonde woman. For someone partying it up in Vegas, she was dressed way too casual, wearing a simple t-shirt and jeans.

Still, Regina couldn’t help but notice she was very pretty. Very pretty indeed.

Regardless of that, Regina waved her off.

“I’m fine, thank you.”

The woman, however, didn’t budge.

“Are you sure?” she pressed. “Because you look pretty lost.”

“I’m not lost,” Regina snapped. “I’m trying to get back to my hotel, is all.”

The blonde remained and simply tilted her head to the side like a confused dog.

“What you had enough already?” she laughed before getting her phone out of her pocket. “It’s not even eleven. Kids stay up at Disneyland later than this.”

Regina rolled her eyes.

“I’ve lost my friends and I’m not running around this cesspit by myself. I’m not a college frat boy.”

Concern appeared on the blonde’s face.

“You lost your friends? Well, will you be okay getting back to your hotel?”

Regina nodded until she realised _shit._ Ruby had all the pass keys.

She threw her head back and groaned.

“Why did I agree to let someone else deal with my damn pass key? What kind of idiot am I? So stupid!”

The blonde laughed but instantly composed herself when Regina glared at her.

“Sorry, that’s not good at all. Hey, tell you what, why don’t I come help you find your friends? They can’t have gotten far.”

Regina eyed the blonde suspiciously.

“I don’t go riding around with strangers. Thanks for the offer though.”

The blonde nodded in understanding but instead of leaving her alone, she held out her hand.

“Emma Swan, small town sheriff with an addiction to bear claws at your service. See, no longer a stranger.”

Regina still wasn’t sure of her. She seemed way too eager to help.

“How do I know you’re really a sheriff and not just messing with me?”

The woman, Emma, laughed again before reaching into her jeans pocket and pulling out a sheriff’s badge. Regina laughed right back.

“So you carry it round with you even in Vegas?”

The blonde nodded.

“Crime never sleeps.”

Regina rolled her eyes again.

“That was so cliché and how do I know that’s even real? After all, it’s Vegas. I’m sure there are dozens of people walking round here with fake police badges.”

That didn’t deter Emma, who just laughed again. Regina had no idea why she found this all so hilarious. Still, the blonde seemed very amused by the situation.

“I don’t know whether to be insulted that you don’t believe me or be happy you take the stranger danger thing so seriously.  As a REAL sheriff I’ve had to do that class for the elementary school kids so many times but maybe I should just bring you in instead.”

The ‘sheriff’ clearly thought she was hilarious but Regina did not subscribe to that type of humour.

“I still don’t believe you.”

Emma just looked at her, eyebrows slightly raised.

“Oh yeah? Well you clearly can’t think I’m a danger to you because two taxis have come and gone without you even noticing.”

That didn’t help her case as it only made Regina angrier.

“You’re distracting me, that’s why!”

Emma sighed, shoving her badge back in her pocket before putting her hands on her hips.

“Look, what I was trying to say was that if you really thought I was a creep, you’d be long gone by now. So we could carry on arguing about this or you can accept my help and we can find your friends. Okay, we’ll be in crowded public places and I promise you, I’m a perfect gentleman…woman…Whatever, I’ll be totally polite and stuff.”

Regina regarded the woman seriously for a moment, watching as she held her hand out again.

In all honesty, she seemed genuine. And that was saying something since Regina was practically programmed to expect the worst in everybody. She also didn’t want to wander round Vegas alone so being with a sexy sheriff was a pretty good alternative.

With a sigh of defeat, Regina took Emma’s hand and shook it.

“I’m Regina Mills.”

“Nice to meet you, Regina Mills,” Emma grinned. “So why you here? Birthday?”

Regina looked at the blonde like she was stupid, about to point out her sash when she realised it had gone. It must have come apart, she guessed. It was made of poor material, no offense to Ruby’s effort.

Oh well, she shrugged. She wasn’t too fond of it anyway.

“Bachelorette party,” she answered and Emma’s smile grew.

“Hey, me too! Well a bachelor party but yeah…weddings.”

“Weddings,” Regina repeated before frowning. “Won’t your friends miss you? I don’t want to ruin your night.”

“They’ll be too busy losing money and drinking shots to realise I’m gone,” Emma assured her. “And you won’t ruin my night, trust me. My friend has invited this jerk I can’t be dealing with it. But enough about me, where do you think your friends have gone?”

Regina thought back to the taxi drive on the way to the casino.

_Ruby pulled out a large itinerary from her purse._

_“Well prepared, Ruby,” Belle commented. “That’s unlike you.”_

_“Hey, you don’t go to Vegas every day,” Ruby replied, looking over her plans with pride._

_“Unless you live here,” Ashley shrugged._

_“Or you’re a gambling addict,” Dorothy added._

_Ruby waved them off._

_“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Now listen. We want to a) make sure Mary-Margaret has the best time ever, and b) make the most of what Vegas has to offer. So we’ll start at this smaller casino to dip out toes in the water then we’ll move straight on to Caesars Palace. Get it out the way while we still have money and aren’t mortally drunk._

_Regina looked to Mary-Margaret. The way the pixie-haired woman was going, they’d be reaching that point pretty soon._

“Caesars Palace,” Regina told Emma. “That was their next stop!”

“Great!” she grinned. “Gives me a chance to get on those poker tables. While we look of course.”

Regina gave her a pointed look which put Emma on the defensive.

“Hey, no harm in having a little fun too. We’re in Vegas after all. We’ve paid to get here so we might as well make what we can out of it.”

Regina shrugged, she did have a point.

“Okay, we’ll walk around and if we can’t see them, we’ll play some poker then look again.”

“I like that plan,” Emma nodded in agreement before looking down at the briefcase with a frown. “Interesting choice of purse.”

“It’s not a purse,” Regina corrected her and decided to just come clean. “I won the jackpot.”

“Seriously?” Emma questioned in surprise. “That’s full of money?”

Regina nodded and lifted the briefcase and opened it for the blonde to see. Emma gasped and quickly closed it.

“Okay, now I’m not leaving your side. Waling round here with that you’re a target for desperate guys who’ve cleared their bank accounts and don’t want to face their wives. No, I’m sticking with you. Consider me your personal bodyguard for the evening.”

Regina rolled her eyes again but didn’t argue.


	4. Stopping by Caesar's

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for the comments and kudos! Quick disclaimer and warning before this chapter, there is some gambling and also I know nothing about gambling so this should be interesting. Again, I own nothing and my grammar sucks. Hope you all enjoy!

Caesers Palace was without a doubt a spectacular piece of architecture. Regina had travelled around quite a bit, seen ancient ruins and grand palaces so she had learned to appreciate such things. The casino/hotel was not even the most magnificent hotel she had visited but it was certainly not what she had expected.

Sheriff Emma Swan however was less impressed.

“Why does it look like the inside of the Titanic?” she commented as they walked into the casino.

“What?”

“You know, it looks like the inside of the Titanic, pre-iceberg of course. Haven’t you seen the movie?”

“Yes, I’ve seen the movie,” Regina snapped. “Everyone has seen that movie.”

“Hey, I’ve met a lot of people who haven’t. They think it’s overhyped.”

“It’s not overhyped,” Regina replied.

“I know right!”

During the short cab-ride they shared, Regina had discovered Emma was a rambler. At first it was incredibly annoying but by the time they’d made it to the casino area, it was just a minor irritation.

Emma led Regina through the casino, pointing out groups of women while the brunette kept her eye out for the rest of the bachelorette party. They covered the entire casino floor (which was huge), but couldn’t find them.

“Great,” Regina huffed. “We spent a fortune getting here for nothing.”

“Not for nothing,” Emma shrugged. “We can play some poker.”

“I’m not in the mood for poker.”

Emma just shrugged again.

“You can watch me play.”

Regina couldn’t argue with that. This was Emma’s trip too, after all. She had abandoned a night of fun with her friends to help her so watching her play poker was the least Regina could do.

She trailed after Emma as she wandered round the poker tables, weighing up her options. Eventually she joined a game, the other players being an old guy in a cowboy hat, a greying woman, and a skinny guy who was likely high on cocaine from the look of him.

Regina stood close to Emma’s side, who sat confidently at the table. She didn’t know much about poker but after a few games, she knew for a fact Emma sucked at it.

The cowboy won every game and, clearly quite the sore loser, Emma accused him of cheating. After a heated argument which attracted both a small crowd and security, Regina dragged her off.

“That was so embarrassing!”

“He was cheating!” Emma cried in defence.

“No he wasn’t,” Regina snapped. “He was playing the game. I don’t know why you got so heated you barely put any money down.”

“It’s the principle,” Emma replied. “He shouldn’t have won.”

Regina sighed, shaking her head and the blonde’s idiocy. She looked around the room and spotted a free place at one of the roulette tables.

“Come on,” she said. “Let’s go over there.”

Emma quickly forgot all about the cowboy and engrossed herself into the new game. After a few spins, she wasn’t getting anywhere and she huffed.

“This game sucks.”

“You don’t have to play it,” Regina told her. The blonde’s insistence on winning something was costing them time.

“Yeah, yeah,” Emma waved her off. “Wanna give me a number?”

“18,” Regina said without even thinking. Emma didn’t argue or question it, just put the bet down. A man across the table laughed.

“You really gonna listen to your friend, girly?”

“I’m not her friend,” Regina quickly cut in.

“Gee thanks.”

“Sorry.”

“I’m only messing,” Emma shrugged it off. “And yeah I’m gonna listen to her. Aren’t you gonna place your bet?”

He smirked and put his chips down.

“Black,” he announced. “Only one of us is gonna win this, girly.”

Regina looked down at the board. 18 was red. He had a 50/50 chance; Emma had 1 in 36. She didn’t like those odds.

She watched in anticipation as the wheel spun and the ball dropped. The ball rolled around a bit before landing on 20 red.

“Yes!” Emma cheered, smiling as the croupier pushed the chips over to her. Regina even had to admit she was relieved but the guy wasn’t happy at all.

“Odd,” he put quite a few counters down before looking at Emma challengingly. The blonde just looked up at Regina.

Regina looked around the board. She was getting a better idea of how the game worked.

“1 to 12,” she answered.

“Oh, come on,” the guy protested but Emma ignored him and put her chips on it.

The wheel spun, the ball dropped and it landed on a lucky number 10.

Emma threw her hands up.

“Woohoo!”

Regina rolled her eyes but secretly shared the sentiment. This game was fun.

The guy glared at Regina.

“How you doing that, Missy?”

“She’s lucky,” Emma answered for her, reaching up to touch the hand Regina hadn’t even realised she’d put on the blonde’s shoulder. “My lucky charm.”

Regina couldn’t help but smile at that.

The guy huffed and put his chips on 1 to 18. Emma just looked up at the brunette expectantly.

“32,” Regina said. It was the first that came to mind.

“You sure?”

“Yes,” Regina nodded, feeling the nerves rise.

The guy laughed.

“Shall we make this more interesting?”

“What do you suggest?” Emma asked.

“I win, I get all your chips. You win, you get all yours.”

Regina scoffed at that.

“Do you really thi…”

“Deal,” Emma interrupted her, moving all her chips over. He smirked and did the same.

“Emma!” Regina gasped. “He has better odds than you!”

“I have faith in your lucky choices,” Emma answered. Regina felt conflicted. Though Emma’s trust was touching, it was such a stupid idea.

“But it’s all your money!”

Emma just shrugged.

“Life is for taking risks.”

Regina’s heart was in her throat as the wheel started spinning. She didn’t know why it mattered to her. She barely knew Emma from Adam and it was a stupid discussion in the first place. Really she should be more concerned about finding Mary-Margaret and the others. Yet when the croupier dropped the ball onto the wheel, she found herself unable to watch.

She kept her eyes closed tight, her heartbeat ringing in her ears. She couldn’t stand the tension. The moment passed so slow Regina thought she’d die from the anticipation.

Then the moment was broken by Emma’s cheer and she felt a great surge of relief.

She opened her eyes to see the chips being given to Emma and the guy storming off. The blonde was grinning from ear to ear as she collected all the chips.

“What a game!”

“I’m glad you were successful, Miss Swan,” Regina told her honestly.

“All thanks to you and your good luck on your side,” Emma told her before looking at her watch. “Oh shit, ten to midnight.”

“Did you have plans?” Regina frowned, instantly feeling guilt. Emma shook her head.

“No, just something I’d wanted to do. Hey, wanna come take a chance with me?”

“Isn’t that an ABBA song?”

“ _Take a Chance On Me,” _Emma corrected her. “I love the _Mamma Mia_ version.”

“I like both.”

“Same here, kinda. Anyway, wanna try something? We can come straight back and look for your friends.”

She didn’t know if it was the alcohol in her system or the adrenaline pumping through her, but Regina found herself nodding.

“Sure,” she agreed. “When in Rome.”


	5. Big Apple

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for all the support on this story and sorry I haven't updated! I'm for some reason super busy at the minute so this is a short chapter. Again, my grammar sucks and I own nothing. Hope you all enjoy!

“Ma’am, are we going or what?” the cab driver asked through the rolled down window while Regina stood on the sidewalk, looking for Emma.

“She’ll be here in a moment. She’s just cashing in her chips.”

The cab driver huffed and shook their head.

“Look, I have places to be and you’re holding me up. I gotta make a living, you know.”

Regina shot them a glare.

“Well if you don’t want my custom, then go. I’ll find a cab with a driver who knows the meaning of customer service.”

“Fine,” the driver replied, rolling up the window and driving off.

“NO! Wait!” she called after them but alas, the cab was gone. It was then Emma chose to appear, just in time to see the cab drive away.

Regina felt a little guilty but Emma just laughed.

“I gave you one job, Mills.”

“I’m sorry, Miss Swan.”

“Don’t sweat it,” Emma shrugged. “We might make it if we run.”

 _“Run?”_ Regina looked down at their feet. While Emma wore boots, she was wearing stilettos. The sheriff must have followed her gaze too but just shrugged.

“Take them off.”

“Take them _off?”_

“Yeah, the ground is basically all concrete and I’ll make sure you don’t step in anything.”

“No,” Regina said adamantly. “Absolutely not.”

Emma just shrugged again.

“Alright then,” she said before swooping Regina off her feet and began carry her bridal style.

“Miss Swan, put me down!”

“Look I promise you once we get there, it’ll be worth it.”

Regina was sceptical but her feet had been hurting a little so taking her weight off them wasn’t so bad. So she allowed the sheriff to carry her, just complained the entire way.

“Will you be careful!”

“Watch where you’re going!”

“Do you even know the way?!”

“Move that hand right now, Miss Swan!”

Emma seemed to just ignore her, moving at an impressive speed. It didn’t take Regina long to figure out where they were heading and when they reached the entrance to the Big Apple Coaster, she wasn’t surprised when the sheriff put her back on her feet.

“Impressive, Miss Swan.”

Emma just shrugged.

“That’s what firefighter training gets you.”

“Firefighter training?” Regina frowned. “I thought you were a sheriff?”

“Wasn’t always the plan,” Emma replied. “Now let’s get in there.”

As they approached the entrance to the coaster, a young man appeared and stopped them.

“Sorry, coasters closed.”

Emma’s shoulders dropped in disappointment/

“Seriously?”

“Sorry,” the guy shrugged. “You missed the last ride by ten minutes. You can come back tomorrow.”

“No, I have to go on it tonight,” Emma stressed. “I can’t tomorrow.”

“Sorry, I guess it gives you an excuse to come back,” the guy shrugged.

The look of disappointment on Emma’s face made Regina feel even guiltier for ruining her night. So she decided to step in.

“How much?”

“Excuse me?” the guy frowned.

“How much to get us on that coaster?”

“Ma’am, the coaster is closed.”

“Yes, you said that,” Regina nodded. “But how much for it to open again?”

“I can’t just open the coaster again. I’m only an employee.”

“Oh come on,” she continued to push but the guy still shook his head. Regina sighed- she was going to have to pull out the big guns.

She leaned in and whispered in the guy’s ear, telling a little white lie.

When she pulled away, Regina watched the conflict in the guy’s expression.

“$500,” he said, “and maybe I can swing it.”

Emma grinned and reached into her pocket, throwing the guy a roll of cash.

“$600.”

The guy nodded and walked off, leaving Regina to look at the sheriff with a frown.

“You’ve been carrying it with you all night?”

“No, that was my winnings off that jerk.”

“You’re wasting all that on a fairground ride?”

At that, Emma looked incredibly insulted.

“It’s the Big Apple Coaster. The carriage is a yellow cab!”

Regina just rolled her eyes.

The guy returned and beckoned them through.

“I’ve spoken to my superiors and they gave it the go ahead.”

“Yes!” Emma cheered, eagerly following the guy while Regina trailed along behind. Before they could get in the carriage, the guy stopped her.

“Ma’am, you can’t take that briefcase on the ride.”

“Oh,” she said, looking down at the case. “Is there a locker or anything I can put it in?”

At that, the guy sighed.

“Ma’am, do you know how much trouble it is to get a coaster in the middle of Las Vegas to run after closing time?”

Regina got it and looked to Emma.

“You go ahead. I’ll stay here.”

Emma shook her head and reached into her pocket.

“I got this,” she said, taking the briefcase and, to Regina’s surprise, handcuffing it to a railing. “There, sorted. Let’s ride!”

“You carry handcuffs around?” Regina questioned and Emma shrugged.

“You never know when you need them. Now come on, lets go!”

Regina rolled her eyes and followed the blonde into the front of the carriage.

Once the guy made sure they were securely strapped in, he gave a thumbs up to someone Regina could not see that coaster started moving. They moved forward slowly, turning a corner before ascending up a tall vertical slope.

The view was beautiful, Regina couldn’t enjoy it as they climbed, suddenly becoming very nervous. She’d never been one for roller-coaster and no amount of alcohol or adrenaline could change that. Emma, however, was like a bubbly child, a huge grin on her face as they reached the top.

When they got to the peak, Regina enjoyed a single moment as she looked out onto the glittering lights of Vegas. Then, she was faced with a drop and her stomach did just that. They descended at high speed and she couldn’t help but scream as they went up down, up down, the looped upside down. Emma was vocal too but it was more like hollering, letting out a fair few woo-hoos.

Then, it was over quicker than it had taken to get on. The guy was waiting for them and he rushed them off, Emma quickly unlocking the handcuffs and giving the briefcase back to Regina. Despite being scared half to death, she was happy that the sheriff clearly enjoyed herself.

“That was so awesome!” Emma exclaimed as they walked out. “Shall we head back to Caesers and see if you’re friends are there now?”

Regina shook her head, holding her stomach.

“No, I need to eat something.”

“Music to my ears,” Emma grinned and Regina rolled her eyes.


	6. Get This Party Started

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!  
> So I suddenly decided to write a chapter to this for some reason. This doesn't mean I'm stopping Paint it Black (in fact I've started the next chapter) but I had a burst of inspiration and this is what happened. Again, I own nothing, my grammar sucks, and I've never been to Vegas so sorry for any inaccuracies. Hope you all enjoy!

“Have you tried calling them?” Emma asked through a mouthful of burger, earning a look of Regina that said ‘do you really think I’m that stupid?’ “Well maybe you should try again?”

Pulling out her phone, she dialled Mary-Margaret’s number, only to get her voicemail again.

“Dammit,” she huffed, slamming her phone down on the table. “Voicemail.”

“Don’t you have the other people’s numbers?” Emma asked and Regina shook her head.

“I barely know them. Well, that’s a lie. I know them well enough. But I wouldn’t call them friends. I moved away from our hometown for college and never went back, apart for weekend visits and such. They’re my step-sisters friends more than mine.”

Emma watched her closely while she chewed the last big bite of burger, before swallowing it with a gulp.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” Regina replied, leaning back on her chair.

“Why are you on this bachelorette trip? I mean you obviously don’t want to be here and you could easily have lied and said you were busy. So why bother coming?”

“It’s my sister’s wedding,” Regina shrugged. “I couldn’t not. Their getting married tomorrow, after all. Her parents are dead, she’s an only child, my mother is a queen bitch. I’m all she has.”

“Fair enough,” Emma replied before pushing the plate towards her. “Fries?”

Regina wasn’t one for fast foods but she was in such a bed mood, she gave in and took a handful.

“I think I might go back to my hotel and just explain it to the receptionist. I don’t want to waste anymore of your time.”

“You’re not wasting my time,” the sheriff was quick to assure her. “But if that’s what you want, let me finish this up and I’ll take you there.”

“You don’t need to do that,” Regina told her, more out of curtesy now. She actually found she felt safer with Emma there with her, which was understandable. Her being a sheriff and all. And she was glad when Emma shook her head.

“No, I do. My mind wouldn’t rest if I didn’t know you’d gotten back safe. And you carrying round that money only makes it more dangerous. Consider me your personal bodyguard until your safely back in your hotel room.”

“Okay,” Regina nodded, stealing some more fries. “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it,” Emma replied, biting into her burger again, a trail of BBQ sauce running down her chin.

 

Once the sheriff had devoured her burger and persuaded the editor to share the gigantic couple’s ice cream float with her, they got in a cab and headed to the hotel.

As soon as Regina stepped into the familiar hotel lobby, she felt an overwhelming sense of relief. Finally she felt as though she was back home. Even though it was actually 2,500 miles away.

Still, she felt relieved and couldn’t help the smile that appeared on her face. Emma seemed to notice too, as it made her chuckle.

“You’re glad to be back, huh?”

“I am,” Regina replied. “Nothing against you though. You’ve been wonderful.”

“Good to know,” Emma chuckled again as they made their way over to the front desk.

A slender man sat behind it, wearing the typical oversized blazer and button-up vest. When he saw them, he smiled way to enthusiastically to be genuine.

“Can I help you, ladies?”

“Yes,” Regina pipped up. “My friend has my room key and I can’t get hold of her. Can I get another key?”

The guy didn’t reply, just typed away on his computer.

“What’s your name?”

“Regina Mills.”

He typed in her name and nodded.

“Ah, the Lucas booking. So your friend has the key?”

“She does, Miss Lucas in fact.”

“Right,” he replied. “Think is, it’s against hotel policy to give you a key when you didn’t actually make the booking.”

“What the fuck?” Emma cut in. “That’s the most ridiculous think I’ve ever heard.”

“Yes well its hotel policy,” the guy said again with a shrug.

Regina sighed and put the briefcase on the desk.

“Whatever, can I get another room then?”

“I’m afraid not.”

“Why not?” Regina demanded. “I know you haven’t booked all these rooms.”

“You’re correct but technically you have misplaced hotel property and so I cannot give you a booking until you prove it’s back in your possession.”

“This is ridiculous,” Emma interrupted again. “Are you honestly going to refuse this woman a room?”

“She has a room,” he replied. “She’s very welcome to wait in our bar for her friends to return.”

Emma was about to argue back but Regina put her hand on her arm. She was too drained to deal with an argument right now.

“Come on. Let’s go get a drink.”

Emma nodded, glaring at the guy before storming off towards the bar. Regina also gave a look of distaste before following her, pulling the briefcase off the desk with sass.

They sat down at the bar and ordered some shots, downing three each before one of the spoke up.

“So what are you going to do now?” Emma asked.

“Drink,” Regina replied. “I’ve got $30K to do burn, might as well party.”

“Sounds good, mind if I join?”

“Don’t you have a bachelor party to get back to?”

“Nah,” Emma replied, waving down the bartender to give them another shot. “You need me to show you a good time.”

“I do?” Regina questioned in amusement.

“Yep,” Emma nodded, giving a nod of thanks to the bartender as he placed the shots in front of them. “I’ve researched this place from top to bottom and if my friends aren’t going to pay any attention to it, I might as well share that knowledge with you.”

“Can’t say no to that,” she replied raising her glass. “You’re hired, Miss Swan.”

“Why thank you, Miss Mills,” Emma said, raising her glass also. “To the best night in Vegas anyone has ever had.”

They clinked their glasses before downing their shots.

The night was only just beginning.


	7. The Morning After the Night Before

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for the comments and kudos! Felt inspired again so wrote another chapter. Again, I own nothing and my grammar sucks. Hope you all enjoy!

Regina woke up to the sound of her phone ringing, her head pounding with someone snoring in her ear. With a groan, she scooted across to the edge of the bed and found her cell phone amongst a pile of her discarded clothes. Yet by the time she found it, the call had ended. Checking the screen, squinting at the brightness, she saw she had fifteen missed calls from Mary Margaret. It was also twenty passed eight in the morning.

Tossing the phone aside, she lay back on the mattress, burying her face in her pillow. Then after a few moments her mind finally registered that there was in fact someone snoring next to her. Shooting up, she stared at the person-shaped lump under the covers, blonde curls poking out of the top.

Regina tried to trace her memory back to the night before, to find out how she got there. In a strange hotel room with Emma Swan.

 

They were at their third club, or was it their fifth? She couldn’t remember for sure. The others had been quite similar yet this one was by far the best. It must have been some kind of themed night as they were just playing 80’s music. New Order, Human League, Blondie; all the good electric and punky classics.

Everything was neon, bartenders dressed like Marty McFly and Madonna. It was brilliant, everyone dancing and having a good time, especially her and Emma. The sheriff had been true to her word, as the night had gone from one of the worst to one of the best she’d ever had in little over three hours.

As they danced together, Regina couldn’t stop staring at her. She didn’t know if it was the disco lights, the music, or the excessive amount of alcohol she’d consumed, but Emma was stunning. Like really stunning. The most stunning person she’d ever seen.

Once that song had finished, the music quietened as the DJ shouted through his mic breathlessly.

“One for the lovers now.”

As soon as she heard the opening keyboard note, she couldn’t help but smile.

“I love this song!”

“Me too!” Emma called back over the music before holding her hand out. “Wanna dance?!”

The question had barely left her lips before Regina took the hand a little too eagerly. Still, Emma chuckled and they began to dance, together this time. Her hands linked behind Emma’s neck as she held on to her waist, moving together to the music.

She could feel Emma’s breath against their lips, their faces far too close to be casual. Even with all she’d drunk, she was suddenly very self-aware. She didn’t want to do the wrong thing, make Emma uncomfortable. But if she didn’t do it, she’d likely regret it when she’d actually sober up later, or so she thought in that moment. So, with a confidence she didn’t usually possess, she leaned up and placed a kiss against Emma’s lips, overjoyed when it was quickly recuperated.

The next thing she knew, Emma had her up against the bathroom door as kissed as though their life depended on it. Every part of Regina’s body was buzzing and she fisted her hands in the sheriff’s curls. She knew it was stupid to be in such a position, with someone she’d met only hours before in fact, yet she didn’t care. She was feeling stupid, not caring about the consequences in that moment. Right now it was just her and Emma. And boy, it was good.

Then Emma pulled away, meeting her gaze breathlessly.

“Shall we get out of here? Still a lot to see?”

Regina nodded and followed as Emma led her out and through the club, never letting go of her hand. They went to the cloak room and collected the briefcase. She’d thought it was stupid to put something so valuable somewhere it could easily be stolen yet thanks to Emma’s police badge, it was locked up safely in the office. Giving the manager a more than generous tip, they headed out into the cool Las Vegas air. She had no idea what time it was but it was still dark so they still had time.

“So what now?” Emma asked, squeezing her hand. “What shall we do?”

“Something stupid,” Regina replied. “Something we wouldn’t do if we weren’t drunk in Vegas with a briefcase full of cash.”

Emma chuckled and nodded in approval.

“Sounds interesting. So, your majesty, what do you have in mind?”

She thought for a minute, racking her mind for what little she knew about Vegas. Then she got a thought that made her heart do a little jump. Without thinking and with a smile on her face, she said the thought out loud.

“Let’s get married.”

The sheriff stared at her in surprise before smiling to.

“Yeah,” she nodded, stepping forward and cupping her face. “Let’s do it.”

Regina’s smile turned into a grin before she placed a passionate kiss against Emma’s lips. She knew it was stupid, but it felt right at the time. And at the time, all that mattered was that night, anything beyond could wait till the sun came up.

 

Now the sun was up and she was sat up in a bed that wasn’t hers, in complete shock. She tried telling herself it wasn’t real, that it was just an alcohol induced hallucination. Yet when she looked at her left hand and saw a flashy ring on her finger, she knew that wasn’t the case.

Panic beginning to set in, her only options were to wake Emma up and face it head on or get out of there like a bat out of hell and pretend it never happened. She chose the later.

Getting out of bed slowly and quickly putting on her clothes, she crept out of the hotel room, careful not to wake up Emma. Once the door shut behind her, she let out a sigh of relief before making her way down the corridor.

For that short time, she was fine. Then she heart Mary Margaret screaming.

“YOU RUINED MY WEDDING DAY YOU STUPID BASTARD!”

Regina rushed down the corridor to the small space outside the elevators. Sure enough Mary Margaret was there, and Ruby, and David with a selection of his groomsman. One of which she recognised, and he seemed to recognise her.

“Well hello there gorgeous,” Killian slurred drunkenly, taking an uneven step forward before two other groomsmen held him back.

Ruby looked to her and Regina quickly held her left hand behind her back, concealing the ring she was yet to take off.

“Where the hell have you been?!” she demanded, to which Regina shrugged.

“Around,” she replied, before looking to Mary-Margaret, who was hysterical, mascara running down her cheeks. “What’s happened?”

“THAT BASTARD HIRED MY FIENCE A HOOKER!”

“For the last time, nothing happened,” David huffed in reply. “Look we went a bit wild but in our defence the best man planned out our evening and then bailed. Speaking of which, can one of you guys go find her.”

One of them nodded and rushed passed Regina down the corridor she’d just been down.

“SO THAT EXCUSES HIM FOR HIRING YOU A HOOKER?!” Mary-Margaret screamed at him.

“No it doesn’t,” David replied. “But he was just trying to make my last night of freedom a good one.”

“Well,” she replied, much quieter but twice as spiteful as she pulled her engagement ring off her finger. “You can have all the freedom you want. The wedding is off.”

“What?” David questioned. “Babe…”

“Don’t babe me,” Mary-Margaret snapped at him, throwing the ring at his face before pressing the button to summon the elevator. “We’re done, I’m done.”

David dropped to his knees before her, clearly drunker than he was letting on.

“Babe please!”

Mary-Margaret didn’t reply, refusing to even look at him.

Then a familiar voice came down the corridor.

“For fuck sake, what the hell is happening here?”

Regina’s head napped round and saw Emma walking down the corridor barefoot in a hotel bathrobe, one of the groomsman following along behind.

David instantly jumped to his feet and stormed towards her.

“Where the hell have you been?”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Emma said with a chuckle, in it a hint of sadness. “So what’s going on?”

“Nothing’s going on,” David snapped at her. “No wedding, nothing, because you fucked off. Some kind of best man you turned out to be.”

Regina’s breath hitched in her throat. Of course the signs had all been there, sheriff in a small town and a part of a bachelor party. Yet her mind hadn’t put two and two together, and now her messy night was even messier.

Then Emma looked passed David and met her gaze, she tensing too.

They stared at each other for a few moments before the ding signalling the arrival of the elevator cut through the tension like a knife.

“Regina,” Mary-Margaret slurred. “Come on, lets go.”

She looked to Emma again, for one final look, before joining the two women in the elevator. As the doors began to shut, she thought she heard Emma call her name but before she could register it, they had closed.


	8. Poolside Converstations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for all the comments and kudos! Again, I own nothing and my grammar sucks. Hope you all enjoy!

The wedding was off and Mary-Margaret was surrounded by her bridesmaids in her hotel room as she cried over David’s supposed infidelities.

So Regina took the opportunity to go sunbathe round the pool.

It wasn’t often that she went on a vacation away but whenever she did, it was always somewhere warm. The Caribbean, California, Corfu even. She loved the sun on her skin, and the opportunity to lie back and relax. Luckily, Las Vegas had particularly good weather that day and so the trip wasn’t a _complete_ disaster.

She was quite enjoying herself until a shadow hung over her, blocking out the sun. With a huff, she opened her eyes and pulled off her sunglasses, only to wish she hadn’t.

“Hey,” Emma said awkwardly as she stood over.

“Hey,” Regina replied, also feeling awkward. “What are you doing here?”

Emma laughed at that, sitting down on the edge of her sunbed.

“I was meant to give Mary-Margaret a message from David but ended up getting a slap off Ruby and the door slammed in her face. Was just about to leave when I saw you here.”

“Oh really?” Regina raised her eyebrows amusingly. “You just so happened to spot me on a rooftop pool?”

Emma laughed once more, this time with a slight blush.

“Alright I may have been looking for you. Because, well, we need to talk.”

“We do?”

“Well I’d say so,” Emma replied, holding up her left hand to find a ring not to dissimilar to the one Regina was still wearing.

With a sigh, Regina sat up.

“Can’t we just forget it ever happened?”

“Not really,” Emma said with an awkward chuckle. “I mean, we’re legally married. We kinda need to sort that out.”

“Well can’t we have an annulment or something?” Regina questioned.

“I don’t think so. I mean, we consummated the marriage. God I hate that word. _Consummated_ , sounds so official. But yeah if it didn’t work for Ross and Rachel I don’t know if it’ll work for us.”

“Are you basing your knowledge on annulments on a plot line in _Friends_?”

“Well do you know any better, fancy pants?” Emma challenged, making Regina shoot her a glare.

“There’s certainly no need for that.”

“There isn’t? Look I want this sorted same as you, as civilly and as quickly as possible. I’m just saying I don’t know if annulment is an option but hey I’m a sheriff, not a lawyer. And last time I checked, neither were you. What do you do, again? Publishing or something?”

“None of your business,” Regina snapped. “I suggest we just let our lawyers sort this out.”

“Thing is though, lawyers like money,” Emma pointed out. “And I wanna make sure no assets get moved around, okay? I can tell you’re not a terrible person but I don’t have a lot and what I do have…I don’t want it taken away from one stupid mistake.”

“I want nothing from you,” Regina told her. “And I’m insulted you’d even insinuate…”

“I wasn’t thinking you would but divorces are messy no matter the circumstances. You know, if we’re going to do this, we need to do it properly.”

Regina sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.

“Of course, I’m sorry. Killer hangover, a cancelled wedding, and an accidental marriage is a bit too much to deal with.”

“I get it,” Emma nodded. “I’m feeling the same. Been a crazy weekend, huh?”

“Tell me about it,” Regina chuckled. “So I guess we should change contact information?”

“Yeah,” Emma nodded again, pulling her phone out of the pockets of her jeans. It was then Regina noticed the jeans, specifically how good she looked in them.

Shaking away the thoughts, she pulled her own phone out of her bag, opening up a new contact before swapping phones with the sheriff. Once they were done putting in their numbers, they gave each other their phones back. She’d put her number under the name ‘Regina Mills’ yet Emma had chosen to go a different route, putting hers under ‘wifey’.

Regina said nothing about it, deciding to let it slide despite the burning desire to make a snarky comment about it.

“Hey, do you want to go get a drink?” Emma asked. “You know, to talk this over.”

“Oh,” Regina replied before pausing to work out the rest of her answer. A part of her wanted to say yes, because she needed to talk to someone about all this. Yet she was also reluctant as, well, she didn’t want to make things more complicated than they were. As while Emma was clearly a very nice woman, the last time they’d drank together, they’d ended up in a messy situation.

Before she could answer, Ruby came into view, weaving through the sunbeds towards them.

“Emma Swan, what the hell are you still doing here?”

“Uh…” was all Emma could manage, looking like a deer in headlights.

Ruby didn’t seem to care, looking to Regina instead.

“Is she bothering you?”

“No,” Regina was quick to shake her head. “No, we were just talking.”

“Huh,” Ruby replied. “So you two know each other?”

Regina didn’t miss Emma’s eyes widening a little more, so she decided to jump in.

“Miss Swan here saw me here and recognised me from this morning and wanted to know how Mary-Margaret was doing.”

Ruby eyed Emma suspiciously before giving Regina a similar look.

“I hope you didn’t tell her anything.”

“I didn’t” she assured her. “My lips were sealed.”

“Good,” Ruby nodded. “Right, you need to come up now. Mary-Margaret wants to talk to us all together.”

“Alright,” Regina sighed, as she moved to gather her stuff. “You go ahead I’ll be along in a minute.”

“Right,” Ruby nodded once more, giving Emma one finally glare before marching off again.

“Thanks,” Emma said as soon as she was out of sight, her gratefulness evident in her voice.

“It’s fine,” Regina assured her, picking up her stuff and climbing off the sunbed. “I guess this will be goodbye then.”

“Yes,” Emma nodded, holding out her hand. “It has been nice meeting you, even with…well the accidental marriage thing.”

Regina chuckled and shook her hand.

“It’s been nice to meet you too.”

Then, letting go of her hand, she gave her one final smile before turning her back and walking away.

“I’ll call you,” Emma shouted after her, making her laugh again.

“I do hope so,” she called back. “Otherwise we’ll be staying married.”

She didn’t look back, suspecting she’d find it amusement. She wouldn’t have guessed Emma would stay there for some time, pondering those words for longer than could be considered a passing thought.


	9. Swan's on a Plane

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for all the comments and kudos! Again, I own nothing and my grammar sucks. Hope you all enjoy!

The wedding was officially cancelled, Mary-Margaret and her bridesmaids were planning one final girl’s night before heading back to Storybrooke. The honeymoon was cancelled, the time off work revoked. If they hadn’t lost so much money, it would be as though it had never been planned in the first place.

Regina decided not to stay, exchanging her plane ticket to an earlier flight. After all, if there was no wedding, what was the point? She could have an evening flight to New York and have a day at home to get some work done.

Sitting in her allocated seat, seatbelt already fastened and earplugs at the ready, she was looking forward to catching a few hours shut eye during the almost five hour flight. However, it turns out the guy next to her wasn’t happy.

“I can’t sit near the middle,” he told the hostess. “I need to sit near the back.”

“I’m sorry, sir, but the back is full.”

“You don’t understand,” he emphasised. “The back of the plane is more likely to withstand a crash. I read that online. So I need to be back there for my own safety.”

Regina had to bit her lip as not to inform him that if they crashed, the likelihood of any of them surviving was incredibly unlikely. And also remind him he was not the only person on that flight, so why should he be granted a seat in the ‘safe’ part of the plane while the rest of us were meant to take the hit. But she said nothing, not wanting to make the long flight awkward before it had even begun.

Instead, she just looked out of the window, wishing for the moment she’d spot the New York City skyline as they landed at JFK. As, yet again, she was seated next to an idiot.

“Alright,” she heard the hostess sighed. “I’ll see if anyone will switch with you but if no one does, I’m afraid there’s nothing I can do.”

“That’s fair,” he replied and when she heard the hostes walk away, Regina looked back to the man.

“Nervous flyer?”

“Is it that obvious?” he asked with a chuckle. “I just hate it. If it was up to me I’d drive everywhere.”

“Well, you’re more likely to die in a car than a plane,” she told him. “This is the safest mode of transport there is.”

He stared at her with wide eyes and it was then she realised she hadn’t helped the situation at all.

Thankfully, the hostess quickly returned.

“Someone has agreed to switch with you.”

He wasted no time in gathering his things and rushing to the back of the plane.

Regina rolled her eyes and looked out of the window again. Hopefully this person would be more agreeable.

She soon felt someone sitting down next to her.

“Hey there, wifey.”

Regina’s head instantly shot round and, sure enough, Emma Swan was sat next to her.

“Emma? What are you doing here?”

“Do I need a reason sit with my lawfully wedded wife?” she teased before answering seriously. “I’m taking David’s leave and I thought I’d come to New York to help with the divorce. You know, to get some stuff sorted. I was going to call you when I landed to see if we could meet but when I saw you and that guy next to you wanted to move, well I took the chance.”

“You’re coming to New York?”

“Yeah,” Emma said in a ‘duh’ way. “By the way, do you know any hotels?”

“What?”

“Hotels, you know, where I can stay?”

“Back it up a second,” Regina said, pinching the bridge of her nose. “So let me get this straight….”

“Nothing about this situation is straight,” Emma laughed at herself, only to stop when Regina gave her a look. “Sorry.”

“As I was saying,” she continued. “You’re coming to New York with me to help with the divorce?”

“Well not _with_ you,” Emma corrected her. “I was going to keep myself to myself, but you ruined it.”

“Me?”

“Yeah, David told me you weren’t getting on a plane till tomorrow so I thought I was safe.”

“You thought you were safe?”

“Yeah, you know, from looking like a stalker.”

“So when you see me you eagerly take the seat next to me?”

“Well it would be weird to be on the same plane as you and not say anything.”

“Touché,” Regina nodded before frowning. “Wait, you told David what happened between us?”

“No,” Emma was quick to clarify. “I just…enquired.”

“Oh really?” Regina raised an eyebrow. “And what did you’re enquiries find?”

“He told me you were leaving tomorrow morning, which was false, and that you were in a relationship so I was barking up the wrong tree.”

Regina rolled her eyes. Her idiot sister had fallen in love with an even bigger idiot.

“That’s not true.”

“It’s not?” Emma questioned, seeming a little more relaxed. “David was so adamant you were. Someone called Mal?”

“No, I’m single,” Regina clarified. “Mal and I were dating but we decided to call it quits a few weeks ago, something David is very aware of.”

Emma nodded in understanding, before shrugging.

“I guess he must have forgot. Nothing causes amnesia than getting dumped the night before his wedding.”

“More like the morning of,” Regina corrected her, to which the other woman winced.

“Damn, that’s even worse.”

It was then the hostess came by, making sure they were all fastened in. Soon enough, they were up in the air and Emma had got them some cokes, both not wanting to drink after what had happened the night before.

Regina had neglected her earplugs and settled in to listen to Emma, as she talked about the train wreck that was David’s bachelor party.

“Killian’s a bastard,” Emma said with distaste. “Always has been, but he’s ‘one of the guys’. If it was up to me, he wouldn’t have been invited but David insisted he’s a good laugh so I couldn’t really argue with him. Then as soon as we got on the plane, the cheesy pick-up lines started, and he wouldn’t leave me alone all the way to the hotel. Then as soon as we got to that casino, he started being a major creep. Grabbing my ass and telling me he’ll have had me by the end of night.”

“Oh dear god,” Regina grimaced. “I mean, he was full on with me at the bar but Jesus.”

“What? You met him?”

“Yeah, he chatted me up at the bar. Now you know why I risked my luck outside instead.”

“Ugh, when I see him I’m gonna punch him in face.”

“You should anyway from the sound of things, though I’d never condone violence.”

“I shouldn’t either,” Emma chuckled. “But yeah, I’d had enough and I found you and well, you know what happened after that.”

“Indeed I do,” Regina nodded, chuckling also. “So why was David so mad at you if you weren’t even there?”

Emma sighed, leaning back in her chair.

“I was the best man, I was in charge. David was meant to have fun, and I was meant to make sure he was having fun but also that he didn’t go out of control. Then I go off with you, Killian took charge and all hell broke loose.”

“Then they should blame Killian, not you.”

“Oh they do,” Emma nodded. “But they feel like I abandoned them, like I’m their mother or something.”

“I’m sorry,” Regina found herself saying. “If you hadn’t kept you away…”

“No,” Emma cut her off. “Don’t be ridiculous. If I could go back, I wouldn’t change a thing. Your safety is more important than any relationship drama, okay? And none of this is your fault r my fault. It’s all on Killian being an ass and David being stupid enough to go along with it.”

Regina nodded, giving her a smile before glancing out of the window.

“You can stay at my place.”

“Huh?” Emma questioned, making Regina look back at her.

“You can stay at my apartment,” she clarified. “I have a spare room so it saves you getting a hotel.”

“Are you sure?” Emma asked. “I don’t want to impose…”

“You won’t be,” Regina assured her. “What’s mine is yours, remember?”

Emma laughed at that, before waving to flag down the hostess again. For a moment, Regina felt a slight regret in making the offer. After all, the situation was complicated enough as it was. But, as she watched the other woman talk to the hostess, she told herself what harm could it do? Emma was nice enough and they both wanted the same thing, to get a quick and easy divorce.

That was right, wasn’t it?


	10. Roommates

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Merry early Christmas! Thanks for all the comments and kudos! Again, I won nothing and my grammar sucks. I hope you all enjoy!

For a moment when Regina woke up the next morning, safely back in her New York apartment, she thought she’d dreamed it all. Vegas, marriage, Emma, all figments of her imagination.

Then she registered that the smoke alarm as going off, and realised not only was Emma Swan very real but she was setting fire to her home.

Jumping out of bed, she raced out of her room to find the sheriff stood in her smoky kitchen, holding a frying pan with bacon on it that looked close to cremated.

“I’m so sorry,” Emma spoke guiltily. “I was trying to surprise you with breakfast but I got distracted and…”

Regina sighed and held her hands up to stop her.

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it,” she told her, moving over to open a window. “The sentiment was very nice though.”

“Yeah well it was the least I could do and I fucked it up,” she said before her eyes widened. “Shit, sorry for swearing.”

“It’s fine,” Regina said again with a chuckle. “Swear as much as you want. Well, within reason.”

“Cool,” Emma nodded. “So can I at least make you a bowl of cereal?”

“That would be very nice, thank you.”

“Least I could do for my better half,” Emma teased, locating the bowls, cereal, and milk without trouble.

They ate mostly in silence, Regina checking the news on her phone and telling Emma anything interesting. Once they were done, Emma insisted on doing the washing up so Regina decided to get to work, laying back on her sofa and reading yet another manuscript.

Being the head editor, she only got the ‘quality’ submissions, filtered through her numerous subordinates. Yet that didn’t mean they were any good. That was for her to judge. She was on page five by the time Emma flopped down next to her.

“Whatcha reading?”

“A submission.”

“Oh yeah,” Emma nodded. “You’re a big fancy editor.”

“I’m neither big nor fancy, thank you very much.”

“You are so fancy.”

“I’m not fancy, I’m refined.”

“Same thing.”

Regina rolled her eyes.

“Emma, I’m trying to work.”

“Alright, I’ll help you,” Emma offered, at which Regina scoffed.

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Why would it be ridiculous?” Emma questioned with a frown. “I read…sometimes…kinda. Alright I barely ever read but isn’t that the best critic. If I even enjoy it you bookworm’s will love it.”

At that, Regina raised an eyebrow.

“Did you just call me a worm?”

“A wonderful wifey worm who lets her wife help her work.”

Despite her reluctance, Regina sighed and pulled another manuscript from her bookcase.

“Fine,” she said, dropping the papers in Emma’s lap. “But you’d better take this seriously and if you steal any of these ideas I’m going to sue you.”

“Oh please, I have plenty of good ideas of my own thank you very much,” Emma replied, moving to the other side of the couch so she could stretch out.

They must have been sat there for hours, both reading in silence. Every so often Regina looked over to check Emma wasn’t messing around, always finding the other woman completely engrossed in the book. After a while she noticed a pen had appeared in Emma’s hand and she was scribbling away on the manuscript. Regina said nothing, a part of her interested in what the sheriff had to say.

Then Emma slammed the manuscript dramatically down on the coffee table, making Regina jump.

“Jesus, Emma!”

“Sorry, but see, I’m done before you.”

“Yours was a hundred pages less than mine.”

“That’s a technicality. I still won.”

Regina rolled her eyes.

“It’s not a competition.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever you say.”

Regina looked up from the page and shot her a glare.

“Enough, Miss Swan,” she told her in the stern, authoritative voice that struck fear into the hearts of her co-workers. Then she looked right back down to her page, completely missing the fact that Emma was completely unaffected. And had a smirk on her face.

“Swan-Mills.”

Regina’s head instantly shot up.

“What did you say?”

“Swan-Mills,” Emma repeated. “You said Swan and I was just correcting you.”

“Your name is not Swan-Mills,” Regina told her, at which Emma laughed.

“It actually is,” she said, getting off the couch and heading into the spare bedroom. Regina watched her go with a frown, once she was out of sight she shook her head and returned to her reading. Only to have a folded sheet of paper shoved in her face.

“What is this?” Regina questioned, taking the crumbled paper in her hands.

“Open it,” Emma told her.

With a frown, she did as the sheriff said and unfolded the paper, only for her to roll her eyes yet again.

“For goodness sake, Emma. This is our marriage certificate. You could have taken better care of it.”

“We can flatten it out,” Emma waved her out before pointing to the names. “See, I’m not messing around.”

Reading where Emma pointed, Regina’s stomach did a flip. Well, two flips actually. There it was, in black and white.

_Emma Swan-Mills of Storybrooke, ME, and Regina Swan-Mills of New York City, NY._

Dropping the certificate in her lap, she leaned back and put her hands over her face.

“For fuck sake.”

“Yeah, I thought that too,” she heard Emma reply. “But it doesn’t sound too bad.”

“You would say that,” Regina shot back. “Your name’s first. Why not Mills-Swan?”

“What? No, that sounds terrible.”

“Does not.”

“Does so.”

Regina sighed and sat up, putting the half-read manuscript down on the coffee table while clutching their marriage certificate in her hands.

“I need to lie down.”

“Alright,” Emma nodded in undemanding. “I’ll be here if you need me, okay”

Regina nodded and practically raced into her bedroom, closing the door behind her. Sitting down on her bed, she looked at the certificate again. Not only were she and Emma married but they shared a last name, a combination made just for them by the union they made out of lust and heavy intoxication.

“Fuck,” she cursed under her breath. She wasn’t Regina Mills anymore, and that scared her a little.


	11. Back to Reality

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for all the comments and kudos! Again, I own nothing and my grammar sucks. Hope you all enjoy!

The next morning went much more smoothly, mostly due to the fact it was Regina who made breakfast. They sat at her breakfast bar, Regina in her work clothes and Emma in pyjamas.

“So what time will you be home?” Emma asked, at which Regina shrugged.

“Whenever I’ve done what I need to. I’ll call you and let you know when I’m on my way back.”

“Cool,” Emma nodded. “I’ll sort out dinner for us.”

“Please don’t cook again,” Regina almost begged her. The smell of smoke still loitered in the air from the previous morning, despite opening the windows and going through a whole can of air freshener.

“Relax,” the sheriff assured her. “I was thinking I could pick something up.”

“That sounds safe enough, I guess,” Regina replied, although she wasn’t quite sure. Though they’d only been in each other’s lives little over two days, her time with Emma had consisted of one disaster after another. Who knows what danger Emma Swan could get herself into on the search for food?

The thought made Regina almost shudder and so, in an attempt to prevent any potential disaster, got up and walked over to one of her kitchen draws. Pulling out one of the few menus she kept, she returned and placed it in front of her.

Emma picked up the menu curiously, a smirk soon appearing on her lips.

“Pizza, huh?”

“Italian,” Regina corrected her. “I only ever have the pasta dishes.”

“Really? That’s so boring.”

“This place is good in my opinion,” Regina said, choosing to ignore the other woman’s comment. “And I have very high standards.”

“Explains why you married me then,” Emma teased with a smug grin on her face. Regina just rolled her eyes and changed the subject.

“I’m going to check my schedule today and then I’ll check my lawyer’s too. Have you contacted yours?”

“What?” Emma frowned.

“Your lawyer,” Regina repeated and when the other woman looked at her blankly, she sighed. “We need to discuss the divorce with them.”

“Ohhh,” Emma nodded in understanding. “Cool, cool.”

Regina waited for Emma to continue only for her to say nothing.

“Well?” she prompted.

“Well what?” Emma questioned.

“Have you spoken to them?”

“Who?”

“Your lawyer?”

“Ah,” Emma said, sitting up straight and looking at Regina with a guilty expression. “Think is, at this present moment, I don’t actually have one.”

“You don’t have a lawyer? How do you not have a lawyer?”

“Never needed one,” she shrugged. “I uphold the law, not break it.”

“Well don’t your parents have a lawyer?” Regina questioned, at which Emma shrugged again.

“Maybe, I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?”

“Nope.”

Regina sighed and shook her head, before pulling up her blazer sleeve to check her watch.

“Right I need to get going, but we’re not done with this discussion.”

“Alright,” Emma nodded, getting up to follow her to the door. To Regina’s surprise, she helped her with her coat and held up her briefcase. “There you go,” she said, handing it over. “All ready for work.”

For a moment Regina found it sweet, that was until Emma ruffled her hair, instantly ruining the neat style she’d gotten up early to perfect.

“Emma!”

“What? It’s my duty to make sure my wife is all ready for the day ahead.”

“By ruffling my hair.”

“Yeah,” Emma shrugged. “I can’t exactly send you off with a kiss now, can I?”

Regina rolled her eyes and moved to open the door.

“Try not to get into any trouble.”

“I’ll try,” Emma replied and Regina sighed yet again as she stepped through the door and shut it behind her. Hopefully her apartment would be in one piece when she returned.

 

She’d been sat at her desk all of twenty minutes when her mother walked into her office without nodding.

“You’re back,” she commented, taking the seat opposite her. “How was Vegas?”

“Hello to you too, Mother,” Regina sighed without looking away from her computer screen. “And it was…fine.”

“How was my dear step-daughter’s big day?”

“Didn’t happen,” Regina replied simply. “You know Mary-Margaret, ever the drama queen.”

She heard her mother laugh but still kept her eyes on the monitor.

“That girl was always a strange little thing.”

Regina almost said _how would you know? You took any and every opportunity you had to leave us both behind while you and your new husband went off god knows where._ But still, she resisted the temptation.

“Is there something you needed, Mother?”

“Yes, I need that manuscript I gave you last week. I want to re-read it.”

Regina nodded and retrieved it from her briefcase, quick to hand it over in an attempt to get her out of her office as soon as possible.

“Did you read it?”

“Yes,” Regina lied. “But I’m sure your judgement is better than mine.”

“Quite right,” her mother nodded, getting to her feet and leaving her office without another word.

Regina’s eyes returned to her computer screen.

Maybe an hour or so later, Regina was catching up on the many emails he’d neglected over the eventful weekend when her mother returned.

“Regina Mills.”

“Yes, Mother?” Regina sighed, not pausing her typing.

“Who did you show the manuscript to?”

“What?” Regina frowned, bringing her attention away to her computer towards the older woman. “No, of course not.”

Cora Mills raised her eyebrows before flipping through the manuscript.

“Well someone’s made annotations.”

Regina’s frown deepened until the realisation hit her. Someone else had seen the manuscript.

Emma.

She opened her mouth to tell her the truth but her mother beat her to it.

“It’s really brilliant,” she praised, catching her daughter by surprise. “Whoever this is would make a great editor. Do you really not know who did this?”

She went to say what she had planned to before, yet stopped herself before she did. She’d not even subject her greatest enemies to getting hounded by her mother, let alone the woman who was for now her wife.

“No, I don’t.”

Her mother didn’t look convinced but accepted the answer anyway.

“Very well. If you do find out who it was will you please send them to me. I’d very much like to speak to them.”

“I will,” Regina nodded, holding her breath until her mother left her office yet again. Letting out a deflated sigh, she leaned back in her chair.

Emma Swan was certainly one complication after the other.

 

She’d called Emma as she was leaving the office and told Emma to order her the usual pasta dish she preferred. However, when she got home, she found a pile of take-out containers and pizza boxes on her breakfast bar.

“Emma,” she called out and the sheriff quickly appeared from the guestroom, skidding across the laminate with her sock-clad feet.

“You should have said ‘honey, I’m home’” she teased as she walked over properly. “That’s what married people do.”

Regina didn’t bite, just indicted towards the small mountain of food.

“What’s this?”

“Dinner,” Emma answered.

“You’re going to eat all that yourself?”

“No, we are.”

“We are?” Regina questioned.

“Yeah, don’t worry I did get the one you wanted just in case. It’s just I found a picnic basket in the guest room closet and thought we could have one. But if you don’t want to, it’s cool. I’ll freeze some stuff and take the rest to a homeless shelter or something, I don’t know.”

While Regina would usually not agree, she could tell Emma had put some thought into this and didn’t want to disappoint her. Besides, what could be the harm?

Once everything was set out and they were sat on the floor surrounded by food, Regina found she actually enjoyed the informal setting. Though she did insist on eating from a plate, unlike Emma who just scooped the pasta with her fork and lifted it to her mouth with a hand under it. She hadn’t spilt anything yet to Regina knew it was going to happen. It was inevitable.

“So how was walk?” Emma asked as she moved on to one of the pizzas.

“It was fine,” Regina nodded, before recalling what had happened that day. “You annotated that manuscript I gave you.”

“I did,” Emma nodded with a chuckle. “You were right next to me while I was doing it.”

“I know, I was just stating…you did good. My mother was very impressed.”

“Your mother? Wait, you work with your mom?”

“I do,” Regina nodded. “She bought the publishing house and the plan had been she start it up and then I take over. Surprise, surprise, that never happened.”

“That sucks.”

“I suppose,” Regina shrugged it off. “But anyway, it takes a lot to impress her so you must have been good.”

“I’m good at a lot of things,” Emma said with a wink before taking another bite from her pizza slice.

“No seriously, do you have experience in writing?”

“I used to go to a writing class in high school,” she shrugged. “It wasn’t anything serious or anything. Just saved me from going home or wondering the streets. My teacher said I had potential but it wasn’t anything I really considered. It was just a hobby, you know.”

“Do you still write?” Regina asked curiously.

“Sometimes, when I have an idea I can’t shake.”

“I’d like to read some.”

At that, Emma laughed.

“You really don’t. It’s just silly.”

“I’d still be interested,” Regina persisted. “Who knows, I may turn you into a published author.”

“That would be nepotism,” Emma pointed out with another laugh. “Hey, speaking of which, what did your lawyer say? Cos I was thinking if you set an appointment with your lawyer, I can then go find a lawyer who can meet then. You know, since I’m not the one on a schedule.”

It sounded like a strange plan, but Regina nodded along anyway.

“Fair enough, I’ve left a call with my lawyer so when they get back to me, I’ll let you know.”

“Cool,” Emma replied, taking yet another bite of pizza.

Regina turned her full attention to plating up some more pasta, actively avoiding the sheriff’s gaze. She didn’t want to admit that it had completely slipped her mind.


	12. Lunch?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for all the great comments and kudos! Again, I own nothing and my grammar sucks. Hope you all enjoy!

A few days had passed and they’d quickly slipped into a routine. They’d have breakfast together then go their separate ways, Regina to work and Emma to do whatever it was she did, before reuniting in the evening for dinner and casual chill-out time, mostly sitting on the couch watching TV, something Regina rarely did.

Then, out of nowhere one morning, Emma surprised her with a suggestion.

“Let’s meet up for lunch today.”

Regina almost chocked on her coffee but managed to compose herself.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“Lunch,” Emma said again. “Nothing fancy, just a sandwich and a coffee if you’d prefer.”

Regina considered it for a moment, before nodding.

“Yes, that sounds lovely. I know a lovely restaurant that does light meals over a lunchtime. I’ll have my assistant make a reservation and I’ll text you the time and address.”

“Great!” Emma grinned. “Will I need to dress up?”

Regina wanted to say yes, as Emma did admittedly at times look a little scruffy. Yet she didn’t, mostly because she had a soft spot for Emma’s own look but was also slightly fearful of what she would take ‘dressing up’ to mean.

“Don’t worry about it,” Regina told her. “You look fine as you are.”

“Just fine?” Emma teased, before looking down at the t-shirt and jeans she was wearing. “I might change my shirt. I really need to do laundry.”

“You can borrow some of my clothes if you like?” Regina said without thinking and surprised herself as much as Emma looked.

“Seriously?” Emma questioned, eyes wide and eyebrows raised. “”You’d let me borrow your clothes.”

“Yes,” Regina nodded. “What’s mine is yours, remember?”

Emma grinned at that.

“You’re quite right. And if you ask nicely I might even let you borrow my leather jacket.”

“That’s quite alright,” Regina replied. Red leather was certainly not her thing, on her anyway.

 

Everything was going according to plan. Her assistant had made the reservation, she’d text Emma the time, then she got on with her work. Then, just as she was about to head out, Cora Mills appeared with a wild look in her eyes.

“Regina, I need you to come have lunch with me and the foundation board. One of them has had to cancel and I hate having an empty chair at the table. It’s unprofessional.”

“I can’t today, mother.”

“Oh, you can,” her mother replied forcefully. “Do I have to tell you how important it is that, as majority shareholders, we make an impression? Now you’re a Mills and so upholding the family name is your top priority, not whatever prior engagement you may have. Unless you believe that is more important.”

“It is important,” Regina told her. “Very important.”

Her mother folded her arms and looked at her expectantly.

“Well? Aren’t you going to tell me what it is that’s ever so important?”

“Erm…”

Regina panicked. What could she say? _‘Mother, I’m meeting my new wife for lunch, whom I married only a few hours after meeting for the first time and now we’re getting a divorce but she’s living in my apartment and she’s also David best friend, or rather was because he blames her for Mary-Margaret calling off the wedding because while she was meant to be keeping his jerk friend under control she was too busy marrying me, a stranger she’d just met but we got pretty familiar with later that evening. Oh and she’s also a small-town sheriff with no social connections you’d find impressive.’_

Out of all of that, the last part would have likely given her mother a heart attack.

“Well?” her mother pressed again, becoming more and more impatient.

“I-I’m meeting…an editor. Yes, I’m meeting an editor.”

Her mother frowned for a moment before her eyes practically lit up.

“ _The_ editor. The one who did those annotations?”

“Y-yes,” Regina nodded. Technically it wasn’t lying. “They wanted to talk so I’m going to...talk.”

“Very good,” her mother nodded with approval, an ambitious look in her eyes. “Well, go on then! Don’t be late and embarrass us! Oh and do not negotiate money without me, an accountant, and at least two lawyers present. Talented people can be difficult to pin down.”

Regina couldn’t help but smirk at that. Still, putting on her jacket and picking up her bag, she left before her mother could change her mind.

By the time she reached the restaurant, with the added delay of traffic, she was ten minutes late. Rushing inside, she scanned the room until she saw the familiar blonde curls facing away from her, leather jacket resting on the back of her chair.

Making her way over, she sat down and gave Emma an apologetic look.

“I’m so sorry, I was just about to leave and my mom caught me before I could. And then the traffic just wouldn’t move and the cab driver was grumpy and…you’re wearing my shirt?”

“That I am,” Emma smiled, looking down at the blue silk shirt. “You said it was cool this morning…”

“Yes, yes, it’s totally fine,” Regina assured her. “I was just surprised that was your choice.”

“I thought it looked fancy,” Emma shrugged. “I actually quite like it.”

“Well, it looks good on you,” Regina told her with a smile. “So have you looked at the menu?”

“That I have,” Emma nodded. “It’s fancy.”

“You like that word, don’t you?”

“Yep, it’s my word of the day.”

Regina shook her head, opening the menu to hide her amusement as she knew it would only encourage the other woman further.

They ordered their food, Regina going for a small pasta dish while Emma went for a 10oz steak with all the sides.

“Are you really going to eat all that?” Regina asked for a third time once their drinks came (Regina got a glass of wine and Emma had a beer).

“I am,” Emma smiled excitedly.

“Alright then, I won’t have to make dinner.”

“What? Why?”

Emma looked genuinely worried by her words.

“You’re eating a large lunch,” Regina pointed out, only for the sheriff to shake her head in disappointment.

“You underestimate my power.”

Regina rolled her eyes again before changing the subject.

“So, how was your morning?”

“It was alright,” Emma shrugged. “David called me.”

“He did?” Regina said in surprise. “I hope he apologised to you.”

“Yeah, he was feeling pretty bad about the whole thing now that he’s calmed down.”

“That he should,” Regina added, then realising that wasn’t helping anything. “So how is he?”

“Broken-hearted,” Emma replied sadly. “I don’t blame him to be honest. I mean, can you imagine losing your fiancée and your best friend in one day? It must be terrible.”

Regina nodded in agreement, hoping she’d never have to go through that.

“Has he even spoken to Mary-Margaret?”

“Nope, she refuses to speak to him….look, I hate to ask…”

“She hasn’t spoken to me,” Regina told her. “We don’t have that kind of relationship.”

“Really?” Emma frowned. “But she loves you, never shuts up about you.”

“Yes well it’s mostly due to me. Anyway, David likely has little to worry about. Mary-Margaret loves him, that’s obvious to anyone who sees them together. I’m sure they’ll end up getting their happy ending just because it would be typical Mary-Margaret.”

“I do hope you,” Emma sighed. “To be honest though I’m glad I’m here and not there. I’m not into drama.”

“So you come to stay in New York with the wife you’re going to divorce.”

Emma laughed at that.

“Good point. Oh, by the way, have you talked to your lawyer yet? I think I might have found a lawyer.”

“You have?” Regina frowned. “I thought you were waiting?”

“I was but I’d made some enquiries and they called me back. They’re a legit lawyer but they’ve broken away from their law firm and they seem really nice.”

“You do know niceness isn’t the quality you should particularly look for in a lawyer, right?” Regina pointed out, at which Emma shrugged.

“I did google her and she looked good.”

That certainly caught Regina’s attention.

“Really? What’s her name?”

Emma smirked at that.

“You’re jealous.”

“No I’m not,” Regina snapped yet her blush betrayed her.

“You so are.”

“Why would I be jealous?” Regina questioned. “We’re already married.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. You may use that as an excuse but I can see the green.”

Regina rolled her eyes again and luckily their food soon arrived, distracting Emma instantly. To her amazement, the other woman didn’t just finish off her entire meal but ate the remainder of her pasta also.

“I told you I had an appetite,” Emma told her, wiping her mouth with her napkin. “Will you have to be heading back soon?”

“Afraid so,” Regina replied, gesturing to a passing waiter that she’d like the bill. “I must admit, I have quite enjoyed myself.”

“What can I say, I’m a good time,” Emma shrugged with a confident smirk, making Regina chuckle.

“Well we should do this again sometime.”

“Tomorrow?”

The question was hopeful, so hopeful that declining would have broken her own heart, not helped by Emma looking at her with those big green eyes of hers.

“That would be nice,” she replied with a smile that Emma quickly mirrored with a grin.

When the bill arrived, Regina pulled out a credit card but Emma instantly protested.

“No, I invited you, I’m paying.”

Smiling at her manners, Regina shook her head and handed the waiter the card anyway.

“It’s the company card. I may have lied to my mother and said this was a business meeting. She’d crucify me if she found out I didn’t charge it to the company account.”

Emma seemed to accept that, leaning back in her chair and downing what was left of her beer. It was then Regina realised she still had half a glass of wine left. Once the waiter gave her the card back and she put it back in her purse, she picked up the glass once more and brought it up to her mouth.

“So,” Emma spoke up. “When can I meet your mom?”

Regina spilt the entirety of the glass’s contents down her shirt.


	13. Grocery Store Dilemma

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for all the comments and kudos! Sorry about the wait and the shortness of this chapter but I've been super busy! Still, I own nothing and my grammar sucks. Hope you all enjoy!

It was finally Saturday and Emma Swan had officially been in her life for a week. To her though, it felt like an eternity. Not because of Emma herself but more the chaos that travelled in her wake.

After the wine incident, she was officially in her mother’s bad books. Not that she’d returned to work in it, of course not. She’d swapped shirts with Emma in the bathroom, which had earned them a few odd looks afterwards. No, unfortunately her mother had many friends, one of which having been in the restaurant that day and, instead of coming over to say hello, had tattled to her mother that not only was her daughter meeting a blonde woman of significantly lower social class but had also made a fool of herself in front of the entire room.

Though she’d managed to explain to her that Emma was the editor, which was actually true, Cora Mills saw no excuse for such embarrassing behaviour and had refused to speak to her since.

Not that Regina minded that to be honest.

It was afternoon, creeping into evening, and Regina was making her way to the grocery store. She’d planned to make them both a nice meal yet Emma, whom she’d discovered was a human trash can, had eaten the majority of a fridge’s contents and the majority of her cupboard supplies. So she was forced to head out and by the ingredients she needed.

Emma had offered to accompany her but declined, knowing if she brought her along they’d end up leaving with much more food than intended.

The grocery store wasn’t too far from her apartment and so it didn’t take long to get there and grab a basket. Making her way down the meat section, she was debating what quantity of chicken to purchase. Though she knew she’d need a reasonably large amount to satisfy the ever hungry sheriff yet she didn’t want to encourage her worrying daily calorie intake. Emma may have a damn good physic, that didn’t necessarily mean it wasn’t catching up with her in other ways.

It was just general concern, of course.

It was as she was debating about buying a full chicken or two packs of fillets when she heard a similar click of heels behind her.

“Regina Mills shopping in a grocery store? Someone alert the press.”

She couldn’t help but chuckle, shaking her head as she turned to face her.

“I could say the same about you, Mal.”

Mal was dressed to the nines as always, looking as though she’d just walked off the set of _Casablanca._ She smiled amusingly at Regina words, before nodding.

“You got me there. So what brings you here at this time? Aren’t you usually deep into a manuscript by now?”

“I’ve been occupied with other things today,” Regina shrugged. “What about you? No parties tonight?”

Mal was the best event planner in the entire Upper East Side and was usually fully booked from Monday to Monday. Often Regina had been her plus one, and she had to admit the woman had a talent for it.

“Not tonight,” Mal replied. “The wedding was called off when the bride was court in bed with her soon to be father in law. Very dramatic stuff. So I get a night off and I still get paid.”

“Any plans for your rare night of freedom?”

“Ice cream and a Sandra Bullock movie,” she said with a chuckle. “You should join me. It’ll be like old times.”

“I can’t, I’ve…I’ve got someone staying with me,” Regina replied, almost wincing when Mal raised a questioning eyebrow.

“Really? Anyone I know?”

“Erm no, I don’t think so.”

“Oh well why don’t I come round and meet them sometime? I’m hosting a luncheon on Tuesday but I’ll be free in the evening. What do you say? We do need a good catch up.”

“I don’t know…”

“Come on, Regina. I’ve missed you. You were my best friend and just we didn’t work out as a couple doesn’t mean we can’t still be in each other's lives. Unless that’s not what you want?” 

“Of course it’s what I want,” she was quick to reply. “And I guess Tuesday will be fine.”

“Good,” Mal grinned. “I’ll be round at seven, is that okay?”

“It is,” Regina nodded, putting on a smile. “I’ll see you then.”

She watched Mal walk away, swaying her hips as she went.

Great, she thought. Her ex-girlfriend was going to meet her accidental wife.

What could possibly go wrong?


End file.
